Before the ball had even rolled in the final at the Puskas Arena in Budapest (Hungary), Sevilla had received a stern warning from their rival AS Roma: "Don't dream." Italian football has representatives in the finals of three European Cups this season, so they are determined to win all the titles.
"The Wolves of Rome" are led by Jose Mourinho, who has a perfect record in all 5 finals he has participated in, a huge advantage to be able to "threaten" Sevilla, despite the Spanish team also having a "huge" record with 6 final appearances and 6 Europa League championships.
Gianluca Mancini (2) disputes with Sevilla's Erik Lamela
AS Roma had reason to be confident of a victory… The maroon-colored team quickly took control of the match and Leonardo Spinazzola almost opened the scoring in the 12th minute when he faced goalkeeper Bono. In the 31st minute, AS Roma strongly demanded a penalty after Tammy Abraham was fouled in the penalty area, but referee Michael Oliver and the VAR team refused.
Paulo Dybala (21) opened the scoring for AS Roma
The Italian team did not have to wait long, however. In the 35th minute, after a successful ball fight in midfield, Gianluca Mancini sent a smart pass for Paulo Dybala to break through and shoot diagonally past Sevilla goalkeeper Bono. 1-0 for AS Roma.
The entire first half was almost a "monologue" for AS Roma. Lorenzo Pellegrini had a very "dramatic" fall in the Sevilla penalty area in the 45th minute and the referee immediately showed a card for the AS Roma captain's diving move.
Until now, Sevilla seemed to have just woken up, continuously pushing up the attacking formation in the 7 minutes of extra time, creating the premise for an explosion in the second half, including Ivan Rakitic's long-range shot that hit the post.
Rakitic's shot hit the AS Roma goal post
What an irony for AS Roma of coach Jose Mourinho… In the 55th minute, Jesus Navas made a low, uncomfortable cross across the AS Roma goal and center-back Mancini fumbled and let the ball bounce straight into his own net.
This is the first goal conceded by Mourinho's teams in European Cup finals since 2003. From "hero", Gianluca Mancini became "sinner" and the role of this central defender has not stopped there.
Gianluca Mancini embarrassed after own goal
No more goals were scored in the rest of the regular match and after two extra periods, neither side's strikers were able to find the back of the net.
Entering the unlucky penalty shootout, in the second round, Gianluca Mancini shot straight at goalkeeper Bono who had fallen to one side. In the third round, Roger Ibanez could not beat goalkeeper Bono and history called the name of Gonzalo Montiel, who entered the field in the 120+4 minute just to take the penalty.
Mancini could not beat goalkeeper Bono
Montiel's shot was not able to beat goalkeeper Patricio but the referee ordered a retake. Of course, the Argentine midfielder did not miss the chance to score the decisive goal for Sevilla, just like seven months ago he was the one who won the final penalty shootout, helping Argentina overcome France in the 2022 World Cup final.
Gonzalo Montiel and Bono after the decisive penalty shootout
Participating in 7 Europa League finals (2006, 2007, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2020, 2023) and winning all 7 times, Sevilla has become a "unique" phenomenon in the second-tier European Cup, a record that is difficult to break.
Sevilla is the "king" of Europa League
Jose Mourinho is no longer undefeated in finals, and has not broken the record for most European Cups held by his "senior" Giovanni Trapatoni.
Meanwhile, Jose Mendilibar won the European Cup for the first time as a head coach after just over 2 months in charge and is the oldest coach to achieve this feat at the age of 62.
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